Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to improvements in a telecommunication unit provided in a lens adapter for an interchangeable lens removably mounted on an apparatus main body of an image pickup apparatus such as a digital camera.
Description of the Related Art
In an interchangeable lens camera, when an interchangeable lens with a lens mount having a different shape from that of a lens mount of a camera main body is to be mounted on the camera main body, the interchangeable lens is removably mounted on the lens mount of the camera main body via a lens adapter. The lens adapter is often equipped with a telecommunication unit so as to enable communication between the interchangeable lens and the camera main body.
When the lens adapter having the telecommunication unit may not be used due to interference of the telecommunication unit when no electric connecting portion for the telecommunication unit is provided in the interchangeable lens or the camera main body.
Thus, there has been proposed a technique to, when mounting an interchangeable lens and a camera to each other at a mating surface, push a contact portion of a movable connector by a contact pin of a fixed connector so as to move the movable connector to the mating surface. According to this proposal, the movable connector that has moved to the mating surface is held in a state of being pushed back by such an appropriate force as to prevent disconnection of the electric contact due to urging force of a spring (see Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. H11-218827).
According to Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. H11-218827, however, a moving mechanism, a spring, and so forth for the connectors are needed, and this complicates a structure to cause poor electric conduction and may degrade reliability of electric connection.